JP7075622B2 - cabinet - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a cabinet.

Conventionally, a cabinet provided with an opening assisting means for assisting the opening of a drawer in response to a user's switch operation is known. For example, there is known a configuration in which a switch for activating an opening assisting means for assisting the opening of a drawer is provided on a drawer door as in Patent Document 1.

Japanese Patent No. 5202322

However, in the configuration as in Patent Document 1, since the start switch for activating the opening assisting means is always in an operable state, the opening assisting means operates even when the drawer is opened without the intention of using the opening assisting means. There is a risk, and a load is applied to the opening assisting means. Further, for example, if the user erroneously operates the start switch when closing the drawer, the extruded portion of the opening assisting means may be damaged.

Therefore, an object of the present invention is to provide an easy-to-use cabinet with an opening assisting means that suppresses an unintended activation of the opening assisting means when the drawer is opened even if the start switch is exposed to the outside.

The cabinet of the first invention is a fixed frame body, a drawer movably provided on the fixed frame body, and an opening assisting means provided on the fixed frame body to assist the opening of the drawer. Only when the drawer is closed, an opening assisting means having an extrusion portion for pushing out the drawer from the fixed frame body, a start switch having a detection portion exposed to the outside of the cabinet, a power supply unit for supplying power to the opening assisting means, and the drawer being closed. It is provided with an electrical connection means for electrically connecting the detection unit and the opening assisting means. The opening assisting means in a state of being electrically connected to the detection unit through the electrical connection means is activated by the operation of the detection unit.
According to the first invention, it is possible to prevent the opening assisting means from being activated even if the user unintentionally operates the detection unit at the time of opening the drawer, which does not require the activation of the opening assisting means. Suppressing such useless operation of the opening assisting means reduces the load applied to the opening assisting means and improves the durability. In addition, wasteful power consumption can be suppressed.
A second aspect of the invention is the first aspect of the invention, wherein the detection unit is provided on the drawer door, and the electrical connection means is a first electric contact provided on the back surface of the drawer and the first one. It has a second electric contact provided on the front surface of the fixed frame facing the electric contact, and the first electric contact and the second electric contact are linked to the opening and closing of the drawer. Connect or separate from each other. Here, the back surface of the drawer represents the back surface of the components of the drawer, such as the back surface of the door or the back surface of the back plate. Further, the front surface portion of the fixed frame body represents the front surface of the components of the fixed frame body, and is, for example, the front surface of the side plate or the front surface of the back plate.
According to the second invention, since the signal transmission between the detection unit and the opening assisting means is turned ON / OFF in conjunction with the opening / closing of the drawer, the open / closed state detection sensor that detects the open / closed state of the drawer. It is not necessary to separately provide such a device, and with a simple configuration, it is possible to suppress the unintended activation of the opening assisting means when the drawer is opened, and the usability can be improved.
In the third aspect of the invention, in the second invention, the back surface portion of the drawer provided with the first electric contact is the back surface of the door of the drawer.
According to the third invention, it is not necessary to directly wire from the detection unit provided on the drawer door to the back side of the drawer.
A fourth aspect of the present invention is, in the second or third invention, the electric connection means assisting the electric connection means to exert a force in a direction in which the first electric contact and the second electric contact approach each other. Have.
According to the fourth invention, even if the size of the gap between the fixed frame and the drawer in the closed state varies, the first electric contact and the second electric contact can be reliably brought into contact with each other. can.

According to the cabinet of the present invention, even if the start switch is exposed to the outside, it is possible to suppress the unintended activation of the opening assisting means when the drawer is opened, and the usability can be improved.

It is a perspective view of the cabinet which concerns on embodiment. It is a perspective view of the fixed frame body which concerns on embodiment. It is a schematic cross-sectional view of the drawer closed state in the cabinet which concerns on embodiment. It is a schematic cross-sectional view of the drawer open state in the cabinet which concerns on embodiment. It is a schematic cross-sectional view of the electric connection means in the cabinet which concerns on embodiment. It is a schematic cross-sectional view of the drawer closed state in the cabinet which concerns on embodiment.

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings. In order to facilitate understanding of the description, the same components are designated by the same reference numerals as possible in the drawings, and duplicate description is omitted.

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of the cabinet 1 according to the embodiment.

The cabinet 1 has a fixed frame body 10 and drawers 40 and 50 movably provided on the fixed frame body 10. In the example shown in FIG. 1, two drawers, a first drawer 40 and a second drawer 50 located below the first drawer 40, are shown, but the number of drawers is one or more. You may.

FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the fixed frame body 10 in a state where the top plate 11 shown in FIG. 1 is removed.

The fixed frame body 10 has a top plate 11 (shown in FIG. 1), a bottom plate 12, a back plate 13, and two side plates 14. The fixed frame body 10 has a space surrounded by the top plate 11, the bottom plate 12, the back plate 13, and the two side plates 14, and the drawers 40 and 50 can be stored in the space.

The front surface of the fixed frame body 10 is opened to form an opening 16. Through the opening 16, the drawers 40 and 50 are slidably attached to the fixed frame body 10. The slides of the drawers 40 and 50 are guided by slide rails 17 provided on the inner surface of the side plate 14.
In the specification of the present application, "front" refers to the direction in which the drawers 40 and 50 are drawn out from the fixed frame body 10, and "rear" means that the drawers 40 and 50 are housed in the fixed frame body 10. Pointing in the direction.

An opening assisting means 30 is provided on the front surface of the back plate 13. Two opening assisting means 30 are provided corresponding to the number of drawers 40, 50. The opening assisting means 30 has an extruding portion 31 for pushing out the drawers 40 and 50 from the fixed frame body 10, and assists the opening of the drawers 40 and 50.
The opening assisting means 30 pushes the drawers 40, 50 forward against the closing assist means that tries to pull the drawers 40, 50 backward in the vicinity of the closing position of the drawers 40, 50, and against the urging force of the closing assist means. Refers to means.

A frontage reinforcing member 15 is provided at the upper end of the opening 16 in the frontage direction (the direction connecting between the pair of side plates 14). The frontage reinforcing member 15 has the same width as the width of the opening 16 and extends between the pair of side plates 14, and both ends of the frontage reinforcing member 15 are fixed to the side plates 14.

FIG. 3 is a schematic cross-sectional view of the cabinet 1. FIG. 3 shows a drawer closed state in which drawers 40 and 50 are housed inside the fixed frame body 10.
FIG. 4 is a schematic cross-sectional view of a drawer open state in which drawers 40 and 50 are pulled out from the fixed frame body 10.

Each of the drawers 40 and 50 has a door 21, a back plate 22, a bottom plate 23, and two side plates 24, and the upper surface thereof is open.

In the closed state of the drawers 40 and 50, the opening assisting means 30 is located between the back plate 13 of the fixed frame body 10 and the back plate 22 of the drawers 40 and 50.

A power supply unit 80 is provided on the front surface of the back plate 13 of the fixed frame body 10. The power supply unit 80 can be connected to a commercial power source and converts the AC power of the commercial power source into DC power.

The opening assisting means 30 is connected to the power supply unit 80 by a power supply line 81, and receives power from the power supply unit 80 through the power supply line 81.

The opening assisting means 30 that assists the opening of the first drawer 40 is activated by the operation of the start switch 60 provided on the first drawer 40, and the opening assisting means 30 that assists the opening of the second drawer 50 is It is activated by operating the start switch 60 provided on the second drawer 50. Each start switch 60 has a detection unit 61 that detects a user's operation. Further, the start switch 60 has a control unit 74 that receives an input of an operation signal of the detection unit 61 and outputs a control signal to the opening assisting means 30.

The detection unit 61 is provided so as to be exposed to the outside of the cabinet 1 so that the user can easily operate the detection unit 61. For example, the detection unit 61 is provided at the upper end of the door 21 of the drawers 40 and 50, and extends in the width direction (frontage direction) of the door 21. Further, the detection unit 61 also has a portion exposed on the back surface of the door 21 of the drawers 40 and 50. As described above, the detection unit 61 for assisting the opening of the first drawer 40 has an inverted L shape, and has a surface in contact with the lower surface of the top plate 11 and a surface in contact with the signal line 73 (details will be described later). ,have.
Therefore, even if the detection unit 61 located between the lower surface of the top plate 11 and the drawer 40 is provided thinly in consideration of design, it is easy to connect to the signal line 73.

The detection unit 61 has, for example, a touch sensor that generates an electric signal when the user touches it. This touch sensor is, for example, an electrostatic sensor whose capacitance changes through the fingertip when the fingertip is brought close to or touched by the detection unit 61. When the door 21 is made of metal, the door 21 can also serve as a touch sensor type detection unit. Alternatively, the touch sensor may be a piezoelectric sensor having a piezoelectric element that converts the applied force into a voltage.

The detection unit 61 of the start switch 60 can be electrically connected to the opening assisting means 30 through the electrical connecting means 70.

The electrical connection means 70 includes a first electrical contact 71, a second electrical contact 72, a signal line 73, and an electrical wiring 75. The control unit 74, the signal line 73, and the electrical wiring 75 are provided, for example, on the side plate 14 of the fixed frame body 10.

As shown in FIG. 4, the first electric contact 71 is provided on the back surface of the detection unit 61 exposed on the back surface of the door 21 of the drawers 40 and 50. The second electric contact 72 is provided on the front surface of the side plate 14 of the fixed frame body 10 so as to face the first electric contact 71.

The second electrical contact 72 is electrically connected to the control unit 74 by a signal line 73. The control unit 74 is electrically connected to the opening assisting means 30 by the electric wiring 75. The electric wiring 75 serves as both a power supply line and a signal line. The control unit 74 receives power from the power supply unit 80 through the power supply line 81 and the electric wiring 75.

The operation signal of the detection unit 61 is transmitted to the opening assisting means 30 through the first electric contact 71, the second electric contact 72, the signal line 73, the control unit 74, and the electric wiring 75. The control unit 74 receives the operation signal of the detection unit 61 and sends a control signal for activating the opening assisting means 30 to the opening assisting means 30.

The second electric contact 72 is provided in the fixed frame body 10 which is an element on the fixed side, whereas the first electric contact 71 is provided in the door 21 of the drawers 40 and 50 which are elements on the movable side. There is. Therefore, the first electric contact 71 and the second electric contact 72 are connected to or separated from each other in conjunction with the opening and closing of the drawers 40 and 50.

That is, only when the drawers 40 and 50 shown in FIG. 3 are closed, the first electric contact 71 and the second electric contact 72 are connected to each other, and the start switch 60 is detected by the above-mentioned electric connection means 70 including them. The portion 61 and the open holding means 30 are electrically connected.

When the user operates the detection unit 61 (for example, when the detection unit 61, which is a touch sensor, is touched) while the detection unit 61 and the opening assisting means 30 are electrically connected in this way, the operation signal is electric. It is transmitted to the opening assisting means 30 through the connecting means 70. Upon receiving this operation signal, the opening assisting means 30 is activated. That is, the extrusion portion 31 operates to push the back plate 22 in the direction of pulling out the drawers 40 and 50 from the fixed frame body 10.

After the opening assisting means 30 is activated, for example, when a predetermined time elapses, the extruded portion 31 automatically returns to the original position, and the opening assisting means 30 is put into the operation standby state.

As shown in FIG. 4, in the open state in which the drawers 40 and 50 are pulled out from the fixed frame body 10, the first electric contact 71 provided in the drawers 40 and 50 is provided in the fixed frame body 10. The electrical contact 72 is separated from the electric contact 72, and the electrical connection between the detection unit 61 and the opening assisting means 30 is cut off. In this state, even if the user operates (touches) the detection unit 61, the opening assisting means 30 does not start.

Therefore, even if the user unintentionally operates (touches) the detection unit 61 at the time of opening the drawer, which does not require the opening assisting means 30 to be activated, the opening assisting means 30 is prevented from being activated. can. Suppressing such useless operation of the opening assisting means 30 reduces the load applied to the opening assisting means 30 and improves the durability. In addition, wasteful power consumption can be suppressed.

Further, when the user closes the drawers 40 and 50 from the open state, the extruded portion 31 of the operated opening assisting means 30 and the back plate 22 of the drawers 40 and 50 interfere with each other, and the opening assisting means 30 and the drawer 40. It is possible to prevent the 50 from being damaged. This also improves the durability of the opening assisting means 30. As described above, according to the embodiment, while the detection unit 61 of the start switch 60 is exposed to the outside, it is possible to suppress the unintended activation of the opening assisting means 30 when the drawer is opened, and the usability can be improved.

Further, according to the embodiment, since the signal transmission between the detection unit 61 and the opening assisting means 30 is turned on / off in conjunction with the opening / closing of the drawers 40 and 50, the drawers 40 and 50 are opened / closed. It is not necessary to separately provide an open / closed state detection sensor or the like for detecting the state, and the simple configuration can suppress the unintentional activation of the opening assisting means 30 when the drawer is opened, and the usability can be improved.

The power supply unit 80 is provided in the rear space of the drawers 40 and 50, which is generally a dead space in the cabinet. A wiring connection is made from the power supply unit 80 to the second electric contact 72 provided on the front side of the cabinet 1. It is not necessary to directly wire from the detection unit 61 provided on the door 21 of the drawers 40 and 50 to the back side of the drawer. The wiring is on the fixed side, and even if the drawers 40 and 50 are opened, it is not noticeable, so it does not spoil the aesthetic appearance. There is no need for work such as embedding the wiring so that it cannot be seen and does not come into contact with other parts. A part of the door 21 can be used as a detection unit 61, or the door 21 itself can be used as a detection unit, and the degree of freedom in design is high and the design is excellent.

5 (a) and 5 (b) are schematic cross-sectional views showing an example of a connection structure between the first electric contact 71 and the second electric contact 72.

The electric connection means 70 has a means 90 that assists the first electric contact 71 and the second electric contact 72 to exert a force in a direction in which they approach each other. The means 90 has a case 91 and a conductive spring 92 housed in the case 91.

The case 91 is fixed to, for example, the side plate 14 of the fixed frame body 10. The spring 92 is provided in the case 91 so as to be expandable and contractible. One end of the spring 92 is connected to the control unit 74 through the signal line 73 described above, and the other end of the spring 92 is connected to the second electric contact 72. The second electrical contact 72 and the signal line 73 are electrically connected to each other through the conductive spring 92.

5 (a) and 5 (b) both show a state in which the drawers 40 and 50 are closed. In the closed state, FIG. 5A shows a case where the gap (play) between the fixed frame body 10 and the doors 21 of the drawers 40 and 50 is larger than that in FIG. 5B.

As the spring 92 expands and contracts, the second electric contact 72 fixed to the spring 92 moves in the sliding direction of the drawers 40 and 50. When the first electric contact 71 comes into contact with the second electric contact 72 in the closed state, the second electric contact 72 is pressed against the first electric contact 71 by the restoring force of the spring 92. Since the second electric contact 72 is movable, even if the size of the gap between the fixed frame 10 and the door 21 in the closed state varies, the second electric contact 72 and the first electric contact 71 Can be reliably contacted with.

Alternatively, a magnetic material is used for the first electric contact 71 and the second electric contact 72 so that the magnetic attraction force acts in the direction in which the first electric contact 71 and the second electric contact 72 approach each other. As a result, the first electric contact 71 and the second electric contact 72 can be reliably brought into contact with each other.

FIG. 6 is a schematic cross-sectional view of the cabinet 2 according to another embodiment. FIG. 6 shows a drawer closed state in which drawers 40 and 50 are housed inside the fixed frame body 10.

In the example shown in FIG. 6, the first electric contact 71 is provided on the back surface of the back plate 22 of the drawers 40 and 50. A control unit 74 is provided behind the back plates 22 of the drawers 40 and 50 in the closed state, and the second electric contact 72 becomes the first electric contact 71 in the vicinity of the control unit 74 or integrally with the control unit 74. It is provided so as to face each other. The detection unit 61 of the start switch 60 is electrically connected to the first electric contact 71 through the signal lines 76 provided in the drawers 40 and 50. The second electrical contact 72 is electrically connected to the control unit 74 through a signal line. Alternatively, the second electrical contact 72 is provided on the substrate of the control unit 74. Other configurations are the same as those in the above-described embodiment.

Also in the example shown in FIG. 6, the second electric contact 72 is provided in the fixed frame body 10 which is an element on the fixed side, whereas the first electric contact 71 is a drawer 40 which is an element on the movable side. It is provided in the door 21 of 50. Therefore, the first electric contact 71 and the second electric contact 72 are connected to or separated from each other in conjunction with the opening and closing of the drawers 40 and 50.

That is, only when the drawers 40 and 50 are closed, the first electric contact 71 and the second electric contact 72 are connected to each other, and the electric connection means 70 including them connects the detection unit 61 of the start switch 60 and the open holding means. 30 is electrically connected.

Further, the first electric contact 71, the second electric contact 72, and the control unit 74 are provided at positions behind the back plates 22 of the drawers 40 and 50 (positions that cannot be seen even if the drawers 40 and 50 are opened). Because it is used, it does not spoil the aesthetics.

In a configuration in which a handle is provided on the door 21 of the drawers 40 and 50, the detection unit 61 of the start switch 60 may be provided on the handle. Since the start switch 60 can be designed as a handle, it is excellent in design. Further, when the drawers 40 and 50 are opened, the opening assist of the drawers 40 and 50 is activated from the moment the handle is touched, so that the assist force for opening the drawers can be obtained by a natural operation.

Further, the start switch 60 may be configured such that the control unit 74 is integrally provided on the back side of the push button type detection unit 61.

The embodiments of the present invention have been described above with reference to specific examples. However, the present invention is not limited to these, and various modifications can be made based on the technical idea of the present invention.

1, 2 ... Cabinet, 10 ... Fixed frame, 21 ... Door, 30 ... Opening auxiliary means, 31 ... Extruding part, 40, 50 ... Drawer, 60 ... Starting switch, 61 ... Detection part, 70 ... Electrical connection means, 71 ... first electrical contact, 72 ... second electrical contact, 74 ... control unit, 80 ... power supply unit

Claims (4)

Fixed frame and
Drawers movably provided on the fixed frame and
An opening assisting means provided on the fixed frame body to assist the opening of the drawer, and an opening assisting means having an extrusion portion for pushing out the drawer from the fixed frame body.
A start switch with a detector exposed outside the cabinet,
A power supply unit that supplies electric power to the opening assisting means,
An electrical connection means that electrically connects the detection unit and the opening assisting means only when the drawer is closed.
Equipped with
The opening assisting means in a state of being electrically connected to the detection unit through the electrical connection means is a cabinet activated by the operation of the detection unit. The detection unit is provided on the drawer door and is provided.
The electrical connection means has a first electrical contact provided on the back surface of the drawer and a second electrical contact provided on the front surface of the fixed frame facing the first electrical contact. death,
The cabinet according to claim 1, wherein the first electric contact and the second electric contact are connected to or separated from each other in conjunction with the opening and closing of the drawer. The cabinet according to claim 2, wherein the back portion of the drawer provided with the first electric contact is the back surface of the door of the drawer. The cabinet according to claim 2 or 3, wherein the electric connection means has means for assisting the first electric contact and the second electric contact to exert a force in a direction in which the first electric contact and the second electric contact approach each other.

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